Buried in the Country: A Cornish Mystery

The incomparable Eleanor Trewynn returns in the fourth installment of the Cornish Mysteries written by Carola Dunn. In Buried in the Country, she is called back into duty to be a calming force between two future leaders of anti-colonial factions in Rhodesia at a secret meeting in a beautiful hotel in Tintagel. Also at the meeting is her niece, Detective Sargent Megan Pencarrow, who is looking into a missing person report concerning a local solicitor and friend of her aunt as well as providing security for the events. Both storylines converge nicely as Pencarrow involves one of the young leaders in a search and rescue for the solicitor and a local artist who have been kidnapped by a murderous duo: a search which culminates in a very exciting and descriptive car chase.

Dunn’s Cornish Mysteries are reminiscent of classic English country house murder mysteries. Her writing evokes images of Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple, and in my head Eleanor looks exactly like Margaret Rutherford. While this novel did tend to be a bit long-winded in sections, it was a lovely book to enjoy curled up on your sofa with your favorite cup of tea. I look forward to following Eleanor Trewynn on further investigations in Cornwall.